Sunshine Week: Stories and editorials from the State Journal-Register in Springfield, Ill.

Three main government sunshine issues occurred in Springfield in 2013, two at city hall and one at the public school district.

Document shredding scandal at Springfield city hall

An embarrassing public document shredding scandal rocked Springfield city hall during the summer of 2013. Involved were high-ranking police officers, the police union, the city attorney and members of the mayor's staff.

After reviewing internal communications about the shredding, The State Journal-Register editorial board called for a personnel shakeup at city hall. Police Chief Robert Williams and city attorney Mark Cullen stepped down the next day, and during a related news conference, Mayor Mike Houston noted the SJ-R editorial as influential in their decisions to leave.

In explaining the timing, Houston said: "I think that there could be a certain amount of coincidence. This also could be the fact that there was an editorial in The State Journal-Register this morning," calling for Williams to step down and the city to reconsider Cullen's role.

A subsequent lawsuit filed over the document destruction resulted in the city settling for $100,000 – a costly mistake for taxpayers.

On Nov. 5, the Springfield city council and Mayor Mike Houston went behind closed doors to discuss a plan to privatize operations at historic Oak Ridge Cemetery, claiming they could do so under the open meetings act exemption that allows personnel discussions in closed session. The plan had not yet been revealed to the public.

While personnel matters made up a small fraction of the discussion that night, aldermen and the mayor discussed much more, going beyond the scope of the open meetings exemption. A reporter for another news outlet sued the city and won.

In the spring of 2013, the District 186 school board came under scrutiny for its behind-closed-doors handling of a secret plan to sever contractual ties with Superintendent Walter Milton. The newspaper questioned why it was handled in closed session instead of in the public eye and reported that portions of the audio recording of the closed meeting when the separation agreement was signed had disappeared. An editorial advised the school board to find new attorneys who could provide better advice about sunshine laws. The state attorney general agreed with the newspaper that the school district mishandled the ordeal, but a judge later sided with the district.